Dante Bobadilla

Biología y enemigos naturales de Peregrinus maidis (Ashmead) (Hemiptera:Delphacidae) en el Valle de Azapa

El delfacido del maiz, Peregrinus maidis, se encuentra presente en Chile en los valles costeros de Lluta y Azapa. Se realizo un estudio para caracterizar su ciclo de vida y conocer sus enemigos naturales en el agroecosistema local. Las observaciones fueron efectuadas en cultivos de maiz amilaceo, Zea mays L. var. amylacea Sturtevant, cv. Lluteno, ubicados en el campo experimental de la Facultad de Agronomia de la Universidad de Tarapaca, km. 12 del valle de Azapa. La hembra inserta los huevos en la nervadura central de las hojas y, en general, en los tejidos tiernos de la planta. El insecto presenta cinco estadios ninfales durante su desarrollo ontogenico. El primer instar con una duracion de 10,05 (±1,28) dias; el segundo instar 8,94 (±2,02) dias; el tercer instar 9,94 (±1,03) dias; el cuarto instar 10,35 (±1,73) dias; el quinto instar 11,06 (±2,30) dias; y el adulto 62,1 (±14,13) dias de vida. Se pudo comprobar que los adultos presentan formas macropteras y braquipteras. P. maidis se comporta como un monofago estricto, colectandose, eventualmente, sobre Setaria verticillata y Pitraea cuneato-ovata. Los enemigos naturales mas frecuentes son Anagrus sp. (Mymaridae), que es parasitoide de huevos; y varios predadores generalistas, incluidas aranas (Araneae), Nabis sp. (Nabidae) y larvas de neuropteros (Chrysopidae y Hemerobiidae).

ASPECTOS BIOLOGICOS DE EUPITHECIA SIBYLLA BUTLER 1882 (LEPIDOPTERA: GEOMETRIDAE)

Se describen la pupa y aspectos de la biologia de Eupithecia sibylla Butler, 1882. La larva se alimenta de las plantas Prosopis sp. y Caesalpinia sp. (Fabaceae). Las larvas son parasitadas por el endoparasitoide Euphorocera peruviana Townsed (Diptera: Tachinidae). E. sibylla se distribuye entre los 19° a 37° S y entre los 600 y 2.500 msnm. Se ilustra la pupa y el imago

LARVAL POLYCHROMATISM IN THE NEOTROPICAL HAIRSTREAK STRYMON BUBASTUS (STOLL) (LYCAENIDAE, THECLINAE, EUMAEINI) ASSOCIATED WITH TWO NEWLY DOCUMENTED HOST PLANTS IN THE ATACAMA DESERT

ABSTRACT. Host-associated larval polychromatism is described for the first time for the Neotropical hairstreak Strymon bubastus (Stoll, 1780) (Lepidoptera, Lycaenidae, Theclinae, Eumaeini) based on larvae collected in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile on inflorescences of Phyla nodiflora (L.) Greene (Verbenaceae) and Waltheria ovata Cav. (Malvaceae) and reared to adult. This is the first record of a host plant in the family Verbenaceae for S. bubastus. Although other Malvaceae already have been recorded as its hosts, this is the first record of it feeding on W. ovata. Identical sequences (n=19) of the DNA barcode fragment (657 base pairs) of the cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene were obtained from larvae collected on the two plants, providing additional support for conspecificity. However, deep divergence (>2%) was found among these sequences and others from geographically distant localities of the Neotropics. Deep divergence could be associated with phenotypic differentiation of S. bubastus over its wide geographic range.

Genetic divergence of isolated populations of the native micromoth Bucculatrix mirnae (Lepidoptera: Bucculatricidae) in the arid environments of Northern Chile

Abstract Analysis of maternally inherited genes is especially helpful in population studies of host-specialized insects, as female dispersal is key to find an adequate host plant to ensure larval survival. Bucculatrix mirnae (Lepidoptera: Bucculatricidae) is a little-known Neotropical micromoth native to the arid environments of northern Chile whose hypermetamorphic larvae are miners and skeletonizers on leaves of two species of Baccharis (Asteraceae) shrubs. This micromoth has been detected in three isolated locations embracing a narrow geographic range: two from the coastal valleys of the Atacama Desert near sea level and one from the western slopes of the Andes at about 3000 m elevation. As the dispersal of B. mirnae is mostly restricted to the small adult stage, the altitudinal gradient and desert areas among the three localities could be effective barriers, triggering genetic differentiation among populations. Sequences of the DNA barcode fragment of the cytocrome oxidase subunit I mitochondrial gene were analyzed to assess for the first time the patterns of genetic variation of B. mirnae. Fifteen haplotypes, each exclusive to one locality, were found in the 71 specimens analyzed. Genetic divergence (K2P) between haplotypes of different localities was at least 2.0%. A Bayesian analysis with sequences of congeneric species grouped all the B. mirnae haplotypes in a clade, in which three well-supported locality-specific haplogroups were found. In concordance with this pattern, an analysis of molecular variance showed that the highest genetic variation was found among populations. Furthermore, all the population pairwise comparisons (FST) were significant. These results suggest that female migration between isolated populations of B. mirnae is absent. This pattern must be considered in the current scenario of habitat destruction and modification in the arid environments of northern Chile.

Exploring DNA Barcodes of Neotropical and Afrotropical Species of Eccopsis Zeller (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)

ABSTRACT. Originally described from Africa, the genus Eccopsis Zeller (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) currently includes 25 Afrotropical and five Neotropical species. Adult morphological characters suggest that the Afrotropical and Neotropical species might not be congeneric. Here we present the first DNA sequences for Neotropical Eccopsis and use these data in a maximum likelihood (ML) analysis to evaluate the monophyly of the genus, and to examine the utility of DNA barcodes in separating the South American E. galapagana Razowski & Landry, 2008 and E. razowskii Vargas, 2011. Intraspecific and interspecific pairwise distances (K2P) were 0–0.5% and 4.9–5.2%, respectively, and each species was recovered as a distinct, well supported group of sequences (i.e., species) in the ML analysis. An analysis including barcodes of Afrotropical Eccopsis (four species), Afrotropical Paraeccopsis (one species), and Neotropical Eccopsis (two species) failed to recover Eccopsis as monophyletic. Consistent with previous suggestions based on adult morphology, this study highlights the necessity to reassess the congeneric status of Afrotropical and Neotropical species of Eccopsis.